There are a number of religious groups that assert that the Christian believer must keep the Sabbath Day, and that this day is Saturday – ‘the Lord’s Day’ – and not Sunday. It is generally claimed that the sabbath was given to mankind to observe, ‘more than two thousand years before the existence of a Jew’. What validity do these statements have, and how important is the Sabbath to today’s Christian believer?

The Bereans of New Testament times had this commendation:
“These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the Scriptures daily, whether those things were so.” Acts 17:11

So with this in mind, let us look at some verses from Scripture that make reference to the Sabbath, for the advice of Paul is:
“Prove all things, hold on to that which is good.” 1 Thessalonians 5:21

The first sabbath.

A good place to commence this study is the opening book of the Bible. Genesis 2:2,3 refer to the seventh day, and show that God established the seventh day as a separate and holy day. However, the passage does not refer to this seventh day being a ‘sabbath’, nor does it say that it was to be observed by mankind as a sabbath. Neither does any other passage in this first book of the Bible state, or even infer, that the seventh day had been instituted or observed as a Sabbath day of rest for mankind.

You will recognise that the first occasion in which the seventh day is referred to as the sabbath was with the children of Israel in the wilderness.

“And he said unto them, This is that which the LORD hath said, To morrow is the rest of the holy sabbath unto the LORD: bake that which ye will bake to day, and seethe that ye will seethe; and that which remaineth over lay up for you to be kept until the morning. And they laid it up till the morning as Moses bade: and it did not stink, neither was there any worm therein. And Moses said, Eat that to day; for to day is a sabbath unto the LORD: to day ye shall not find it in the field. Six days ye shall gather it; but on the seventh day, which is the sabbath, in it there shall be none. And it came to pass, that there went out some of the people on the seventh day for to gather, and they found none. And the LORD said to Moses, How long refuse ye to keep my commandments and my laws? See, for that the LORD hath given you the sabbath, therefore he giveth you on the sixth day the bread of two days; abide ye every man in his place, let no man go out of his place on the seventh day.” Exodus 16:23-29

The instructions being given here were to become part of the Ten Commandments that would be given to Moses two months later.

“Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.” Exodus 20:8

However, returning to the narrative of Exodus 16, the passage reads as though the sabbath was being introduced for the first time. The basis of collecting food on six days and resting on the seventh is covered in verses 4-8 of that same chapter, “that I may prove them, whether they will walk in my law or no.” (v4)

That the observance of the sabbath was a new concept is admitted by Moses himself when he repeated the law a second time:
“The LORD our God made a covenant with us in Horeb. The LORD made not this covenant with our fathers, but with us, even us, who are all here alive this day.” Deuteronomy 5:2,3

So it was not the covenant that had been given to the fathers (i.e. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob), but one that was being given to them in their day. This is repeated three times in this one verse to emphasise the fact. And what was this particular covenant? The Ten Commandments, which Moses immediately goes on to relate. These commandments are called ‘the covenant’ in a number of places:

“I have made a covenant with thee and with Israel. And he wrote upon the tables the words of the covenant, the Ten Commandments.” Exodus 34:28

“He declared unto you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, even Ten Commandments.” Deuteronomy 4:13

“There was nothing in the ark save the two tables of stone, which Moses put there in Horeb, when the LORD made a covenant with the children of Israel… I have set there a place for the ark, wherein is the covenant of the LORD.” 1 Kings 8:9,21

A New Testament writer, Paul, also regarded the Ten Commandments as the covenant made with Moses, and used an Old Testament passage to drive home his point.
“Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah; not according to the covenant that I made with the fathers, in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt …” Hebrews 8:8,9 [Quoted from Jeremiah 31:31-34].

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thomas

7 months 22 days ago

How comes all 9 laws(commandments) are still put into practice till now while the 4th law being ended? no place where the bible abolished that commandment.why you said that these laws have being replaced by grace through Jesus while others still active? why the one to be abolished while the rest still in use?

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Ksheares

5 months 18 days ago

I encourage all to let scripture be your guide and not mans opinion… The word of God cannot contradict itself. If there is a contradiction found one must attribute it to mans incorrect interpretation.

Exodus 31:16 ESV
Therefore the people of Israel shall keep the Sabbath, observing the Sabbath throughout their generations, as a covenant FOREVER.

-God explained the Sabbath was to be observed FOREVER! So weather given before Moses or for the first time in the wilderness, forever means forever… If it was the intent of God to do away with it once the Messiah came, HE (not being the author of confusion or a man that He should Lie) would not have said otherwise. He would have written until the coming of the Messiah. From the moment it was given moving forward forever… those choosing to follow God were to “remember” the Sabbath to keep it Holy.

Isaiah 56:2-7 ESV
Blessed is the man who does this, and the son of man who holds it fast, who keeps the Sabbath, not profaning it, and keeps his hand from doing any evil.”LET NOT THE FOREIGNER WHO HAS JOINED HIMSELF TO THE LORD SAY, “THE LORD WILL SURELY SEPARATE ME FROM HIS PEOPLE”; and let not the eunuch say, “Behold, I am a dry tree.” For thus says the Lord: “To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths, who choose the things that please me and hold fast my covenant, I will give in my house and within my walls a monument and a name better than sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name that shall not be cut off. “AND THE FOREIGNERS WHO JOIN THEMSELVES TO THE LORD, TO MINISTER TO HIM, TO LOVE THE NAME OF THE LORD, AND TO BE HIS SERVANTS, EVERYONE WHO KEEPS THE SABBATH AND DOES NOT PROFANE IT, AND HOLDS FAST MY COVENANT … these I will bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer;
their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be accepted on my altar;for my house shall be called a house of prayer for ALL peoples.”

-Scripture clearly states God intended the Sabbath not only for Israel, but all who made the choice to join themselves to the Most High God… The God of the Hebrews! In the scripture below it is explains that those who are not Israel, are not to say surely God views them separate from having to observe the Sabbath. There are multiple places in scripture that explains the commands of God given to Israel were to be observed by anyone who desired be His people and serve Him as their God.

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Thanks for your additional comment on Thomas’ question. You wisely encourage Scripture as the guide and we agree, but we still need to approach our study free of bias and read what it states.
However, in regard to your comments, your first quotation would have better started a few verses earlier:
“You are to speak to the people of Israel and say, ‘Above all you shall keep my Sabbaths, for this is a sign between me and you through out your generations, that you may know that I, the LORD, sanctify you. You shall keep the Sabbath, because it is holy for you.” Exodus 31:13,14 ESV
Your understanding of FOREVER clearly takes the word out of context for the passage had earlier defined the limits of its recipients both geographically and time-wise; for it was speaking of the people of Israel [which had well-nigh ceased by AD70]. Now exactly the same word (in Hebrew) for FOREVER was used in a prophecy concerning David’s son, Solomon, so if we take your understanding of it as for ‘Sabbath’ we should also be able to place that same understanding in its application to Solomon.
“He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom FOREVER.” 2 Samuel 7:13 ESV
Solomon’s throne was as you know established in Jerusalem, following that of David’s throne. So that throne should still be there! But there’s not a physical one there and there’s not even a spiritual one there! There has not been a throne in Jerusalem since the Fall of Jerusalem in BC586.
Regarding your second quotation, that from Isaiah, the Sabbath was introduced as part of the Ten Commandments, and therefore became obligatory to the Israelites and non-Israelite who chose to live among them. This is what was covered in the passage you quoted from Isaiah 56 and had no bearing at all on the matter of whether or not the Sabbath was a universally enforced observance outside Israel—which it never was. Any non-Israelite had to accept all Ten Commandments, and the Sabbath was one of them—the Isaiah passage tells us nothing more than obvious fact!
The Sabbath is in exactly the same position today as the throne of David and Solomon. They each lie in dormancy awaiting the return of our Master, who is both Lord of the Sabbath (Mark 2:28) and inheritor of the Throne of David (Luke 1:32). Both are to be re-instituted when Jesus returns to set up his Kingdom. They will then indeed last FOREVER as intended in prophecy. Both sets of conditions were intended to have permanent settings only when established by the Son of God in the future.

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Jason

7 months 16 days ago

Hi Thomas,Thank you for your comment.Letâ€™s not confuse two issues: those that are timeless and that which is not. The law against murder is timelessâ€”it has been since Creation: Cain was guilty of it. The Sabbath observance however was only introduced at the time of the Ten Commandments and was exclusively given to the Israelites.â€œThou camest down also upon mount Sinai, and spakest with them from heaven, and gavest them right judgments, and true laws, good statutes and commandments: and madest known unto them thy holy sabbath, and commandedst them precepts, statutes, and laws, by the hand of Moses thy servant.â€ Nehemiah 9:13â€“14More recent translations convey exactly the same message:â€œYou came down on Mount Sinai and spoke with them from heaven and gave them right rules and true laws, good statutes and commandments, and you made known to them your holy Sabbath and commanded them commandments and statutes and a law by Moses your servant.â€ ESVThis statement is clear that it was at this period of time that God introduced the Sabbath day as an observance, and it was solely to the Jewsâ€”â€œmade known to them your holy Sabbathâ€â€” that it was introduced. The first time that the Hebrew word Sabbath occurs in Scripture is in Exodus 16:23, which is alone sufficient evidence that it had no prior existence.You will agree that Nehemiah was a responsible holy man of God, and he was at that moment speaking in prayer to God; so he was speaking Truth.

The Sabbath was not abolishedâ€”it is held in abeyance, but this is unfortunately obscured in the KJV translation.â€œSo then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his.â€ Hebrews 4:9 ESVThe Sabbath was operative as an observance only during the period covered by the Law of Moses. That Law applied only to the Israelites, and served to be a restrictive control on worship until the birth of the Messiah, Jesus Christ. It was then superseded by the precepts of our Lord Jesus Christ. This is all explained in the Letter to the Hebrews (in which chapters 3 and 4 background the intended application of the Sabbath). Please read through the Letter to the Hebrews to appreciate that the Law of Moses (which included the Ten Commandments) has been forever superseded. â€œIn speaking of a new covenant, he makes the first one obsolete. And what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.â€ Hebrews 8:13 ESV

Our Sabbath observance has yet to come, but it will come: just as God entered His Sabbath, and Jesus entered his, so shall we enter ours when our Master returns to grant eternal life to those who are judged worthy. That Sabbath will last forever.Regards,Jason

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I hadn’t at all overlooked the “second part of Hebrews 8” but I understand it from the Scripture that he is quoting from, namely Jeremiah 31:31-34. The writer of Hebrews was writing to Jews [Hebrews] who knew their Old Testament Scripture. Jeremiah wrote:

Jeremiah 31:31 Behold, the days come , saith the LORD, that I will make a [b][i]new covenant[/i][/b] with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: 32 [i][b]Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt[/b][/i]; which my covenant they brake , although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD: 33 But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. 34 And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying , Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.

This states that the future covenant was to be a NEW one, and not at all according to the OLD one. So your theory is clearly denied by Jeremiah, who was the source of the Hebrews quotation. The Jews would have immediately recalled the source and understood the quotation correctly.

I also do not agree with your assertion that “remembering” requires previous knowledge. What about a teacher saying, “Remember to do your homework that I have just set you.” It here means to retain in memory from this point on—check your dictionary definition if you doubt this. The Hebrew word used is [i]zakar[/i], to mark (so as to be recognised). Gesenius’ Lexicon for Exod 20:8 (which you quote) has “be mindful of this day…”. Concerning specifically the Sabbath command, Nehemiah prayed to God in the hearing of the Jews of his era,

“Thou camest down also upon mount Sinai, and spakest with them from heaven, and gavest them right judgments, and true laws, good statutes and commandments: [i]And madest known unto them thy holy sabbath[/i], and commandedst them precepts, statutes, and laws, [i]by the hand of Moses[/i] thy servant:” Nehemiah 9:13,14

The Law of Moses [i]did not exist [/i] before Moses had had it revealed to him on Mt Sinai, and neither was the holy Sabbath known to them. Although God sanctified the Sabbath at Creation, it was never implemented [i]before the time of Moses[/i]. That is why when a man broke the Sabbath rule, Moses had to ask God what he should do (Numbers 15:32-36).

Paul’s letter to the Galatians emphasizes that the Old Law is a needless shackle.

“For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written , Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them. But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just shall live by faith. And the law is not of faith:…” Galatians 3:10-12

The whole reason for the Law and the Ten Commandments being given is given in the same letter:

“What, then, was the purpose of the law? It was [b][i]added[/i][/b] because of transgressions [b][i]until the Seed to whom the promise referred had come [Jesus][/b] [/i]. The law was put into effect through angels by a mediator [Moses].” Galatians 3:19

Plainly, since Jesus has come, the purpose for the Law has disappeared. So to return to your selected chapter, Hebrews 8:

“By calling this covenant “”new,”” he has made the first one obsolete; and [i][b]what is obsolete and aging will soon disappear.[/b][/i]” Hebrews 8:13

Doesn’t this verse alone sufficiently refute your theory?

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Robert Janko

3 years 7 months ago

“Im a Christian but i believe the Ten Commandments still abide. Iam writing this with nothing but loved but you forgot to quote the second part of hebrews 8 so u made it seem that the new covanent was going to be something completely different from the ten comandments but if you read hebrews 8:10 “”This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.”” so this is not a new covanent but the old MADE NEW. You also said that it was completely new to moses when he was instructed to do it, it might be the case but u must not forget that the jewish nation spent 400years in captivity in egypt where they had got used to the egyptian culture and they were not allowed to fully practise their religion so that is why we read in the ten commandments these words “”REMEMBER the sabbath day…”” they had forgotten it so God reminded them.”

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Firstly, I would caution against denigrating the work of the apostle Paul. He was personally called to preach to the Gentiles (non-Jews) by Jesus himself. (Acts 9:15)

“Paul, an apostle–not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead…” (Galatians 1:1 ESV)

“Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God,” (Romans 1:1). See also 1 Corinthians 1:1; Ephesians 1:1; Colossians 1:1; 1 Timothy 1:1 etc.

Paul preached the Gospel of Jesus Christ, but never ‘replaced’ Jesus —how could he when Jesus had offered himself for sacrifice as an unblemished lamb? Jesus offered himself once, so that no future sacrifice would ever be needed. Jesus’ life was to be that required sacrifice—not to proclaim the Good News to the world. This he left to be the work of his numerous apostles, of which Paul was a special one allocated to the Gentiles. Their work was successfully accomplished, as Christianity is worldwide.

With Jesus’ offering his body as a perfect sacrifice he fulfilled all that was represented in the Law of Moses, as is forcibly argued throughout the Book of Hebrews. In fulfilling the Law (as you admit) he made it redundant and obsolete.

“In speaking of a new covenant, he makes the first one obsolete. And what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.” (Hebrews 8:13)

With the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple in AD70, these words of Hebrews 8:13 achieved their fulfilment. The Law of Moses was done away, and replaced with the Law of Christ.

The Sabbath observance was part of the Law of Moses, which is today obsolete, for it has its fulfilment in Jesus.

“Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” (Matthew 11:29)

The Sabbath law existed to remind the Jews of a future Sabbath (rest) that was promised, but lay yet future. We read of this in Hebrews Chapter 4:

“Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us fear lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it.” (Verse 1)

“Since therefore it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly received the good news failed to enter because of disobedience, again he appoints a certain day, “”Today,”” saying through David so long afterward, in the words already quoted, “”Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.”” For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken of another day later on. So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his. Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience.” (Hebrews 4:6-11)

The Sabbath given to Moses was given solely to the Nation of Israel, God’s Chosen People.

“Not with our fathers did the LORD make this covenant, but with us, who are all of us here alive today.” (Deuteronomy 5:3)

“You came down on Mount Sinai and spoke with them from heaven and gave them right rules and true laws, good statutes and commandments, and you made known to them your holy Sabbath and commanded them commandments and statutes and a law by Moses your servant. (Nehemiah 9:13-14)

I believe your emphasis on Sabbath observance today is well intentioned but is misplaced. Jesus nowhere endorsed its continuation, and in fact he made it subservient to himself.

“For the Son of Man is lord of the Sabbath” (Mathew 12:8)

In making this statement he placed his authority over the Sabbath day, and by use of his authority he has made it an every-day rest. As already quoted,

“Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” (Matthew 11:29)

Therefore there is no case for insisting on a once-a-week day, when Jesus has made it a seven-days-a-week event. As Paul wrote (and prior to AD70):

“Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ.” (Colossians 2:16-17)

If we accept Jesus Christ, then ‘the substance’ is with us — we have no need or requirement to observe the shadow.

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Suday Kumar Rout

3 years 7 months ago

“It seems that Jesus Christ has been replaced with Paul (a self styled apostle). At the outset of His famous Sermon on the Mount Jesus tells “”Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or Prophets ; I did not come to abolish, but to fulfil (Matt.5:17).”” No weekly days has been mentioned in the Bible i.e. Sunday, Monday or Friday etc. Israelites were counting the days by observing the moon. Very simple commandment has been given by our Almighty Father God Through Moses that””Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath of the LORD your God …. (Ex.20:8-9, 23:12).”” God has not mentioned any name of the weekly day but commanded to keep a day out of seven days as sabbath for Him as a token of respect and reverence. Three very personal things God has provided to mankind. 1st. His only begotten son (John 3:16), 2nd. His Spirit (Eze.36:27) and 3rd.His own sabbaths (Eze.20:12).When we are ready receive the first two gifts, then why not the third one?”

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